/ 


CEREMONIES 


ATTENDING   THE 


UNVEILING  OF  THE  STATUE 


OF 


ROBERT  CAVELIER  DE  LA  SALLE 


LINCOLN   PARK,  CHICAGO, 


OCTOBER    12,  1889. 


CHICAGO: 

KNIGHT  &  LEONARD  CO.,  PRINTERS, 
1889. 


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CEREMONIES. 

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A  T  the  hour  appointed  for  the  ceremonies  to  begin 

33  /*     a   large    crowd   of   persons   had  assembled  on 

and  around  the  improvised  platform  erected  near  the 

^  statue,  including  members  of  the  Chicago  Historical 

Society,    and   the   local    French    societies.      Among 

those  present  were  President  William  C.  Goudy  and 

°  his  colleagues  of  the  Lincoln  Park    Board,  General 

00 

**  Joseph  Stockton,  H.  N.  May,  Andrew  E.  Leight  and 

&  John  Worthy,  also,  Mr.  Edmond  Bruwaert,  Consul  of 

France  at  Chicago,  Victor  Gerardin,  president  of  the 
French  Benevolent  Society ;  Edward  Bobe,  presi- 
dent of  the  "  Cercle  Francaise  de  Chicago,"  Alfred 
Gouere  of  the  "Alliance  Francaise,"  Senator  C.  B. 
Farwell,  Honorable  J.  Young  Scammon,  Ex-Mayor 
R.  B.  Mason,  General  A.  C.  McClurg,  Hempstead 
Washburn,  General  H.  H.  Thomas,  Charles  F. 
Grey,  General  William  A.  Strong,  Honorable  J.  K. 
Edsall,  A.  H.  Burley,  John  A.  Enander,  E.  S. 
Dreyer,  J.  J.  Healey,  L.  Proudfoot,  and  a  large 
number  of  ladies. 


At  3:30  P.  M.  President  Goudy,  after  welcoming 
in  a  few  well-chosen  words,  the  company  invited 
to  assist  in  the  ceremonies,  requested  Mr.  Taylor, 
Secretary  of  the  Lincoln  Park  Board,  to  read  the 
letter  of  the  Honorable  Lambert  Tree,  presenting 
the  statue  to  the  Park,  and  the  letter  of  the  Pres- 
ident of  the  Board  accepting  the  gift. 

Mr.  Taylor  then  read,  in  a  clear  voice,  the  cor- 
respondence, as  follows : 

CHICAGO,  July  8,  1889. 
To    THE    HONORABLE,    THE     COMMISSIONERS    OF 

LINCOLN  PARK,  CHICAGO: 

Gentlemen: — Recently,  while  residing  abroad  in 
an  official  capacity,  I  caused  to  be  executed  in 
bronze  a  statue  of  Robert  Cavelier  de  La  Salle, 
and  my  purpose  in  doing  so  was  that  I  might  on 
my  return  home  offer  it  as  a  gift  to  Lincoln  Park. 

The  explorations  of  La  Salle  are,  as  you  know, 
largely  identified  with  the  western  and  northwestern 
portions  of  North  America  which  now  form  so 
important  a  part  of  the  United  States.  In  studying 
the  early  history  of  the  country,  the  services  and 
character  of  La  Salle  have  inspired  me  with  the 
highest  admiration,  which  I  am  sure  is  equally 
shared  by  all  others  who  have  read  the  story  of 
his  achievements. 

He  unquestionably  discovered  the  Ohio  and 
Illinois  rivers,  and  whatever  may  be  the  weight  of 


evidence  as  to  the  real  discoverer  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, I  think  it  is  beyond  controversy  that  he  was 
the  first  white  man  who  ever  descended  that  river 
to  its  mouth. 

Accompanied  by  a  score  of  Frenchmen,  he  navi- 
gated the  river  in  open  canoes  to  its  mouth  as 
early  as  1682,  and  took  possession  of  a  country 
extending  north  and  south  from  the  twenty-fifth 
to  the  fiftieth  parallel  of  north  latitude,  and  east  and 
west  from  the  Alleghanies  to  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

That  territory  probably  contains  now  nearly  or 
quite  35,000,000  of  people  of  European  origin,  and 
embraces  many  of  the  fairest  states  of  the  American 
Union. 

La  Salle's  faithful  lieutenant,  Henri  de  Tonty, 
speaks  of  him  as  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  his 
century.  Certain  it  is  that  he  was  a  man  devoted 
to  great  designs,  from  the  pursuit  of  which  neither 
danger,  fatigue,  famine,  disease,  disappointment  nor 
treachery  could  divert  him.  It  is  impossible  to 
trace  the  immense  course  of  his  journey  ings  on 
this  continent  through  winter  blasts  and  summer 
suns,  without  arriving  at  the  conclusion  that  he 
was  a  hero  of  the  highest  type,  to  whose  geo- 
graphical discoveries  American  civilization  owes  a 
heavy  debt. 

To  those  of  us  whose  lot  has  been  cast  on  the 
shores  of  the  great  lakes  and  in  the  valley  of  the 


Mississippi  he  is  an  historical  figure  of  the  deepest 
interest,  for  it  may  be  truly  said  that  he  was  the 
first  white  man  who  penetrated  the  western  wilder- 
ness and  sent  back  word  to  Europe  of  the  vast 
empire  here  that  awaited  the  touch  of  the  hand  of 
civilization  to  bring  it  into  being. 

With  his  explorations  of  the  interior  of  the 
North  American  continent  the  history  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi valley  really  begins.  Before  that  time  it 
was  a  terra  incognito  to  all  the  world,  and  if  we 
endeavor  to  gaze  into  the  mist  which  covers  the 
early  past  of  the  land  where  we  and  our  children 
live,  the  figure  which  always  emerges  from  the 
gloom  is  that  of  the  intrepid  French  explorer.  La 
Salle  therefore  belongs  as  much  to  our  history  as 
to  that  of  France,  and  it  seems  appropriate  that  a 
monument  should  be  erected  to  his  memory  in 
this  proud  city  of  a  million  people,  which  stands 
in  the  center  of  the  superb  country  with  which 
his  name  is  so  inseparably  associated,  and  on  the 
site  of  which  he  camped  as  early  as  1682,  when 
there  was  not  a  white  man  outside  of  his  own 
small  party  within  a  thousand  miles  of  the  place. 

The  statue  which  I  now  have  the  pleasure  to 
offer  to  Lincoln  Park,  is  the  work  of  the  Count 
Jacques  de  Lalaing,  a  Belgian  sculptor  of  distinc- 
tion, and  represents  the  explorer  at  a  point  at 
which  he  is  supposed  to  have  the  first  view  of  one 


of   the    rivers    which  he  -has  the  credit   of   having 
discovered. 

If  the  Commissioners  will  do  me  the  honor  to 
accept  it,  I  ask  permission  to  confer  with  them  at 
some  time  which  may  suit  their  convenience  as  to 
the  choice  of  the  site  in  the  Park,  on  which  I  may 
proceed  to  erect  the  pedestal  for  its  reception.  I 
have  the  honor  to  be,  gentlemen,  with  the  highest 
respect,  your  obedient  servant, 

LAMBERT  TREE. 

OFFICE  OF  THE 
COMMISSIONERS  OF  LINCOLN  PARK, 

CHICAGO,  July  25,  1889. 
HON.  LAMBERT  TREE: 

Dear  Sir: — I  am  directed  by  the  Commissioners 
of  Lincoln  Park  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your 
letter  of  the  8th  instant,  and  to  accept  your  generous 
offer  of  a  bronze  statue  of  Robert  Cavelier  de  La 
Salle,  to  be  placed  in  Lincoln  Park  on  a  pedestal 
which  you  propose  to  erect  at  your  own  expense. 

Among  the  great  and  brave  men  who  explored 
the  American  continent  and  laid  the  foundation  for 
its  development,  there  is  no  one  entitled  to  greater 
credit  than  La  Salle.  In  the  short  period  of  five 
years  he  traversed  the  country  from  the  St.  Law- 
rence to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  establishing  forts  and 
settlements,  and  brought  this  magnificent  part  of 


8 

the  world  to  the  attention  of  civilized  Europe.  He 
exhibited  in  the  highest  degree  both  patriotism  and 
statesmanship,  seeming  to  comprehend  something 
of  the  events  of  the  succeeding  two  centuries. 

You  do  well  to  present  in  desirable  form  to  the 
present  and  future  generations  a  figure  of  the  man 
who  made  it  possible  for  them  to  enjoy  the  rich 
productions  and  luxuries  of  this  great  country. 

It  will  teach  the  youth  who  may  visit  the  Park 
a  historical  and  geographical  lesson  in  the  most 
impressive  manner.  While  we  have  not  yet  had 
the  pleasure  of  beholding  the  statue  itself,  yet  the 
photograph  indicates  that  it  will  be  a  pleasure  as  a 
work  of  art,  creditable  alike  to  the  artist  and  his 
patron. 

It  will  afford  me  pleasure  to  confer  with  you  as 
to  a  suitable  location,  at  your  convenience. 
Very  respectfully, 

W.  C.  GOUDY, 
President  Lincoln  Park  Commissioners. 

The  statue,  which  hitherto  had  been  concealed 
from  public  view,  by  reason  of  being  draped  by  the 
flag  of  the  United  States,  was  then  unveiled,  and 
its  appearance  was  greeted  with  an  enthusiasm 
which  indicated  full  appreciation,  by  the  audience 
present,  of  the  character  and  services  of  the  illus- 
trious explorer. 


Mr.  Goudy  then  introduced  Mr.  Edward  G. 
Mason,  President  of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society, 
who  delivered  the  following  oration: 

Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen: — A  great  name 
is  a  precious  possession  for  any  people.  And  the 
dwellers  in  this  region  have  a  special  right  to 
include  the  name  of  La  Salle  among  their  treas- 
ures, because  he  was  the  real  discoverer  of  the 
Great  West,  in  which  they  live,  and  because  he 
was  the  possessor  of  the  qualities  which  constitute 
true  greatness.  Here,  at  least,  his  life  and  deeds 
should  never  be  forgotten.  And  it  is  especially 
fitting  to  recount  them  when  citizens  of  Chicago 
come  together  to  celebrate  the  erection  of  a  statue 
in  his  honor. 

Almost  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  in  the 
gray  old  town  of  Rouen,  in  the  ancient  French  pro- 
vince of  Normandy,  was  born  a  son  to  a  wealthy 
merchant  of  the  Cavelier  family.  His  relatives  pos- 
sessed a  landed  estate  called  La  Salle,  from  which 
this  youth  took  the  name  which  was  to  supersede 
that  given  him  in  baptism.  His  full  signature 
was  Rene-Robert  Cavelier  de  la  Salle,  but  he  drop- 
ped one  appellation  after  another  until  he  used 
only  the  title  by  which  he  will  be  forever  known, 
and  signed  himself  simply  De  la  Salle. 


10 

At  the  age  of  twenty-three  he  came  to  Canada 
and  obtained  a  grant  of  land  at  the  head  of  the 
island  of  Montreal.  He  heard  the  stories  which  the 
natives  told  of  mighty  rivers  far  to  the  westward, 
and  gave  to  the  La  Chine  rapids  the  name  which 
preserves  to  this  day  the  memory  of  his  dream  of 
a  water  way  to  China.  Soon  he  received  more 
definite  accounts  of  the  great  stream,  Ohio,  mean- 
ing in  the  Seneca  tongue,  "  The  Beautiful  River," 
and  planned  an  expedition  to  it,  hoping  thus  to 
find  a  route  to  the  sea.  And  in  July,  1669,  he 
embarked  on  his  first  voyage  to  the  west  with  two 
priests,  who  accompanied  him  to  Lake  Ontario, 
where  they  parted  company.  During  the  next  two 
years,  La  Salle  was  incessantly  traversing  the 
wilderness  between  the  Ohio  and  the  lakes,  some- 
times with  Frenchmen,  sometimes  with  Indians 
only,  and  sometimes  alone,  "  with  no  other  guide," 
says  his  faithful  lieutenant,  Tonty,  "than  a  com- 
pass and  his  own  genius."  It  is  certain  that  in 
these  two  years  he  discovered  the  river  Ohio,  and 
followed  it  to  the  falls  at  the  site  of  Louisville, 
and  it  is  probable  that  he  discovered  the  Illinois 
river  also.  It  is  possible,  moreover,  that  he  was 
the  first  of  white  men  to  visit  the  place  where  Chi- 
cago stands,  and  that  he  crossed  the  portage  between 
our  river  and  the  Des  Plaines  in  1671,  or  two 
years  before  Joliet  and  Marquette  were  here. 


II 

At  all  events,  these  explorations  revealed  to  La 
Salle  the  character  of  the  country  south  and  west 
of  the  Great  Lakes,  and  it  is  quite  certain  that  he 
reached  the  prairies.  For  in  his  memorial  to  the 
great  French  minister,  Calbert,  he  says  he  has  seen 
a  region  "  so  bountiful  and  fertile,  so  free  from 
forests,  and  so  full  of  meadows,  brooks  and  rivers, 
that  one  will  find  there,  in  plenty,  all  that  is 
needful  for  the  support  of  flourishing  colonies." 
These  colonies  he  resolved  to  plant  in  this  fair 
land,  and  to  win  for  France  a  new  domain.  He 
had  become  satisfied  that  the  Mississippi  emptied 
into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  And  the  grand  scheme 
which  his  brain  conceived,  was  to  determine  that 
fact,  to  open  the  river  to  commerce,  to  colonize  the 
fertile  west,  and  to  establish  a  chain  of  fortified 
posts  from  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Gulf. 

The  Jesuits  opposed  him  because  they  desired 
to  be  both  church  and  state  among  the  natives. 
The  Canadian  merchants  were  hostile,  because  they 
desired  a  monopoly  of  trade.  But  Count  Fron- 
tenac,  Governor  of  Canada,  was  his  friend,  and  a 
visit  to  France  in  1674,  obtained  him  the  grant  of 
a  seignory  at  the  entrance  to  Lake  Ontario.  This 
was  the  first  step  in  his  enterprise,  and  in  1675, 
on  the  plateau  now  occupied  by  the  city  of  Kingston, 
in  Upper  Canada,  he  built  a  stone  fort,  armed  it  with 
cannon,  and  named  it  Fort  Frontenac.  "  Had  he 


12 

preferred  gain  to  glory,"  says  the  Marquis  de  Seig- 
nelay,  "  La  Salle  had  only  to  stay  at  his  fort,  where 
he  was  making  more  than  25,000  livres  a  year." 
But  he  regarded  wealth  only  a  means  to  an  end, 
and  as  soon  as  he  had  accumulated  the  needed  re- 
sources, his  eager  spirit  led  him  onward.  He  required 
royal  authority  for  what  he  proposed  to  do,  and 
went  again  to  France  in  1677,  and  obtained  from 
Louis  XIV.  the  right  to  make  discoveries  and  build 
forts  in  the  western  parts  of  New  France,  and  to 
find  if  possible  a  way  to  Mexico.  He  returned  with 
a  small  party  enlisted  in  his  service,  and  among 
them  was  one  man  who  was  equal  to  an  army.  This 
was  Henry  de  Tonty,  of  Italian  birth,  a  veteran  of 
the  wars  of  France,  who  became  La  Salle's  most 
devoted  friend  and  most  trusted  lieutenant,  and  who 
deserves  to  have  a  place  in  the  annals  of  the  West, 
second  only  to  that  of  his  great  commander. 

In  the  fall  of  1678,  La  Salle  sent  an  advance 
party  from  Fort  Frontenac  to  Niagara.  Father 
Hennepin  was  in  this  detachment,  and  thus  became 
the  first  of  Europeans  to  behold  the  mighty  cataract 
of  which  he  wrote  the  earliest  known  description. 
The  suspicious  Seneca  Indians  refused  permis- 
sion to  build  a  vessel  above  the  falls,  and  a  fort 
at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  La  Salle  came,  and 
the  red  men  recognized  their  master,  and  granted 
what  he  desired.  While  absent  on  this  mission, 


13 

his  pilot  disobeyed  his  express  orders,  and  caused 
the  shipwreck  of  the  vessel  which  contained  the 
supplies  of  the  expedition,  and  the  almost  total  loss 
of  its  cargo.  "This,''  says  Hemiepin,  "would  have 
made  any  other  man  give  up  the  enterprise."  It 
only  nerved  La  Salle  to  fresh  exertions.  He  forth- 
with established  his  second  fortified  post  upon  the 
high  point  now  occupied  by  Fort  Niagara,  and  gave 
it  the  name  of  his  friend,  the  Prince  de  Conti.  Then 
leaving  Tonty  to  complete  the  construction  of  a 
brigantine  above  the  falls,  the  dauntless  leader 
returned  to  Fort  Frontenac  to  replace  the  outfit  so 
needlessly  destroyed.  He  made  the  journey  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  on  foot,  in  mid-winter,  over 
the  ice  of  Lake  Ontario. 

Completing  his  preparations,  the  summer  found 
him  again  at  Niagara.  Tonty  had  finished  the  ves- 
sel, which  he  named  the  Griffin,  after  the  armorial 
bearings  of  Count  Frontenac,  and  on  August  7, 
1679,  they  embarked  on  Lake  Conti,  which  we  call 
Lake  Erie,  in  the  little  craft  of  forty-five  tons 
burden.  She  deserves  honorable  mention,  for  she 
was  the  pioneer  of  our  lake  marine,  the  fore-runner 
of  a  vast  commerce,  and  it  was  perhaps  a  prophetic 
incident  that  her  flag  bore  not  only  a  griffin,  but 
an  eagle.  She  landed  the  party  at  the  entrance  to 
Green  Bay,  and  was  sent  back  with  a  cargo  of  furs 
to  return  with  supplies  for  a  new  colony  at  the 


14 

Illinois,  and  materials  for  a  new  vessel  with  which 
to  descend  the  Mississippi.  La  Salle  pushed  on 
with  fourteen  men  in  canoes  along  the  western  shore 
of  Lake  Michigan,  which  he  called  Lake  Dauphin. 
Battling  with  storms  by  day,  threatened  by  hostile 
Indians  in  their  night  encampments,  one  of  which 
perhaps  was  not  far  from  the  spot  where  we  meet 
to-day,  and  almost  at  the  point  of  starvation,  they 
reached  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Joseph,  and  built  Fort 
Miami.  Thence  they  went  by  the  Kankakee  and 
the  Illinois  to  Peoria  Lake,  where  the  Illinois  Indians 
had  winter  quarters.  With  them  La  Salle  formed 
cordial  relations,  and  overcame  their  objections  to 
his  Mississippi  voyage.  But  by  this  time  he  had 
become  satisfied  of  the  loss  of  the  Griffin,  of  which 
nothing  was  ever  heard  beyond  a  rumor  that  the 
crew  had  sunk  her,  and  fled  to  the  woods  with  her 
cargo.  In  sadness  of  spirit  he  built  just  below  the 
site  of  Peoria,  Fort  Crevecceur,  or  Broken  Heart, 
in  January  1686,  and  this  was  the  beginning  of  the 
first  permanent  settlement  of  white  men  in  what  is 
now  Illinois.  Then  sending  two  of  his  men  with 
Hennepin  to  explore  the  upper  Mississippi  and  dis- 
cover the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony,  and  leaving  Tonty 
to  hold  the  fort  and  continue  work  on  a  vessel,  which 
he  saw  half  built,  for  his  Mississippi  voyage,  he  re- 
solved to  return  to  Fort  Frontenac  for  fresh  supplies, 
and  especially  an  equipment  for  his  Mississippi  vessel. 


With  only  five  men  he  set  out  in  March,  forced 
his  way  through  the  broken  ice  of  the  Illinois  river, 
waded  the  Calumet  marshes,  crossed  southern  Michi- 
gan, traversed  Lakes  Erie  and  Ontario,  and  reached 
Frontenac  in  May,  having  traveled  constantly  for 
sixty-five  days,  in  the  worst  of  weather,  over  nearly 
one  thousand  miles  of  country,  by  a  course  which 
presented  every  kind  of  danger  and  difficulty,  "  the 
most  arduous  journey,"  says  one  chronicler,  "  ever 
made  by  Frenchmen  in  America." 

Every  kind  of  disaster  confronted  him  here, — the 
shipwreck  of  a  vessel  in  the  St.  Lawrence  bringing 
his  goods  from  France,  the  desertion  and  dishonesty 
of  his  men,  and  the  adverse  proceedings  of  his 
creditors.  But  he  overcame  them  all,  and  embarked 
again  with  a  new  party,  and  by  the  Georgian  Bay 
route  reached  Lake  Huron,  and  passed  down  Lake 
Michigan,  and  by  the  rivers  St.  Joseph,  Kankakee 
and  Illinois,  to  Fort  Crevecoeur.  He  found  it  in 
ruins  and  deserted.  The  terrible  scourge  of  an 
Iroquois  invasion  had  fallen  upon  the  Illinois. 
Tonty,  obliged  to  retreat  by  the  way  of  the  Des- 
plaines  and  Chicago  Portage,  had  reached  at  Green 
Bay  the  friendly  Pottawattamies,  whose  chief  was 
wont  to  say  he  knew  but  three  great  captains  in  the 
world, — Frontenac,  La  Salle,  and  himself.  La  Salle 
went  to  Fort  Miami  for  the  winter,  and  resolved  to 
unite  the  tribes  of  the  West  in  a  common  league 


i6 

against  the  Iroquois,  and  to  establish  them  around 
a  fort,  which  he  proposed  to  build  on  what  is  now 
called  Starved  Rock,  in  the  valley  of  the  Illinois. 
Returning  once  more  to  his  seignory,  he  met  Tonty 
at  Mackinac,  and  the  two  paddled  their  canoes  a 
thousand  miles  orlmore  to  Frontenac. 

Here  he  appeased  his  creditors,  obtained  fresh 
advances,  and  began  his  enterprise  for  the  third  and 
successful  time.  His  party  of  fifty-four  rendezvoused 
at  Fort  Miami,  in  November  1688,  and  Tonty  led 
the  advance  along  Lake  Michigan  to  the  Chicago 
Portage,  and  so  to  the  Illinois.  La  Salle  followed  a 
little  later,  and  doubtless  spent  New  Year's  day  of 
1682  upon  the  site  of  our  city,  where  he  was  snow- 
bound. The  expedition  journeyed  down  the  Illinois 
upon  the  ice,  reached  the  Mississippi  in  February, 
1682,  and  floated  down  its  waters  until  two  months 
later  they  discovered  its  mouth.  A  column  was 
erected  bearing  the  arms  of  France,  the  name  and 
titles  of  Louis  XIV,  and  the  date  of  the  discovery, 
April  9,  1682.  By  that  act  France  obtained  her 
title  to  the  valleyslof  the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi, 
to  which  our  nation  has  succeeded.  And  by  that  act 
civilization  obtained  a  foot-hold  on  the  banks  of  the 
Father  of  the  Waters,  and  thenceforward  steadily 
progressed  along  his  lordly  stream.  And  the  name 
of  the  State  of  Louisiana  to-day  preserves  the  desig- 
nation which  La  Salle  gave  to  the  whole  of  the 


grand  realm  he  added  to  the  French  crown.  This 
was  the  culmination  of  his  career.  It  would  be 
interesting,  did  time  permit,  to  narrate  in  detail  the 
successful  founding  of  his  Illinois  colony,  and  his 
final  expedition,  which  he  returned  to  France  to 
lead  to  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  to  plant  a 
colony  there.  By  error  they  passed  the  great  river 
and  located  on  Matagorda  Bay,  whence  La  Salle 
attempted  to  proceed  to  the  Illinois  for  aid  to  his 
party ;  but  was  assassinated  by  some  discontented 
villians  in  his  band,  on  March  18,  1687,  on  the 
southern  branch  of  the  Trinity  river,  in  what  is  now 
the  State  of  Texas.  So  perished  the  great  discoverer 
in  the  forty-fourth  year  of  his  age. 

Such  in  brief  compass  was  the  life  of  him  whom 
two  centuries  have  not  consigned  to  oblivion,  but 
rather  have  added  lustre  to  his  name.  And  such 
was  the  man  who  has  won  from  his  contempo- 
raries and  from  posterity  encomiums  like  these : 
Says  Tonty,  faithful  to  his  great  leader  unto  the 
death,  and  crying  out  in  anguish  at  his  sad  doom, 
"  Behold  the  fate  of  one  of  the  greatest  men  of 
his  age,  of  a  spirit  wonderful,  capable  of  accom- 
plishing everything."  Hennepin,  who  loved  him 
little,  was  constrained  to  say,  "  He  was  a  man  of 
grand  merit,  constant  in  adversity,  intrepid,  gen- 
erous, engaging,  able,  equal  to  anything."  The 
French  historian,  Gravier,  proudly  writing  of  one 


i8 

who  like  himself  was  born  in  Normandy,  says,  "  He 
was  as  brave  as  the  bravest,  as  pure  as  the  purest, 
and  as  unfortunate  as  the  most  unfortunate.  The 
Columbus  of  his  age,  when  he  fell  beneath  the 
assassin's  ball  he  had  achieved  a  discovery  most 
glorious  for  France,  most  glorious  for  himself. " 
And  our  own  Parkman,  who  has  most  worthily  told 
the  story  of  his  life,  pays  him  this  matchless 
tribute :  "  It  is  easy  to  reckon  up  his  defects,  but 
it  is  not  easy  to  hide  from  sight  the  Roman 
virtues  that  redeemed  them.  Beset  by  a  throng  of 
enemies,  he  stands,  like  the  king  of  Israel,  head 
and  shoulders  above  them  all.  He  was  a  tower  of 
adamant,  against  whose  impregnable  front  hard- 
ship and  danger,  the  rage  of  men  and  the 
elements,  the  southern  sun,  the  northern  blast, 
fatigue,  famine  and  disease,  delay,  disappointment, 
and  deferred  hope  emptied  their  quivers  in  vain. 
America  owes  him  an  enduring  memory, 
for  in  this  masculine  figure  she  sees  the  pioneer 
who  guided  her  to  her  richest  heritage." 

And  yet,  despite  all  this,  some  have  sought  to 
decry  the  achievements  of  La  Salle,  because  he  was 
not  the  first,  in  point  of  time,  to  look  upon  the  Missis- 
sippi. This  was  never  claimed  by  or  for  him.  Pro- 
bably some  bold  Spaniard,  whose  name  has  not  come 
down  to  us,  navigating  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  soon  after 
the  time  of  Columbus,  was  the  earliest  of  white  men 


19 

to  see  the  Father  of  Waters.  Others  of  his  race 
followed,  and  De  Soto  died  on  its  banks  in  1542. 
But  these  purposeless  and  accidental  visits  were 
of  no  moment  whatever.  They  did  not  reach  the 
upper  waters,  and  had  no  connection  with  the  settle- 
ment of  the  valley.  Joliet  and  Marquette  doubtless 
discovered  the  Upper  Mississippi,  and  Hennepin,  at 
the  instance  of  La  Salle,  ascended  it  to  the  falls. 
But  no  one  of  these  descended  it  to  the  sea,  or 
identified  it  with  any  of  the  streams  known  to  fall 
into  the  Gulf. 

It  was  La  Salle,  who  in  pursuance  of  a  settled 
purpose  and  belief,  completed  the  exploration  of 
the  Mississippi  from  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony  to 
the  Gulf,  solved  the  problem  of  the  outlet  of  the 
mighty  stream,  which  with  its  tributaries  included 
the  whole  of  the  Great  West,  established  com- 
munication between  the  sea  and  that  vast  region, 
and  acquired  its  illimitable  territory  for  France. 
So  far  as  his  predecessors  are  concerned,  the  Mis- 
sissippi valley  would  have  been  a  wilderness  to-day. 
La  Salle  came,  and  with  him  civilization.  He 
led  the  vanguard  of  a  never-ending  army  whose 
march  he  directed,  whose  victories  he  planned. 
He  passed  through  the  wilderness  a  solitary  figure, 
yet  not  alone,  for  at  his  back  were  the  myriad 
hosts  of  progress ;  by  his  side  commerce  and  law 
and  government. 


20 

And  as  La  Salle  was  a  type,  and  the  highest, 
of  the  qualities  which  have  made  the  Great  West 
what  it  is,  it  seems  to  be  very  appropriate  that 
his  statue  should  be  erected  in  its  commercial 
capital.  It  is  proper,  too,  for  another  reason,  in 
that  the  indomitable  will,  the  tireless  energy,  and 
the  courage  in  the  face  of  adversity  which  he  dis- 
played, have  been  so  repeated  in  the  history  of 
this  city  as  to  make  its  citizens  kin  in  spirit  to 
the  great  discoverer.  Very  fitting  is  it,  further- 
more, that  the  metropolis  which  has  risen  where 
two  hundred  years  ago  he  was  storm-stayed  in  a 
desolate  wilderness,  at  the  bleak  portage  whence  he 
set  out  upon  the  expedition  which  was  the  crowning 
glory  of  his  life,  should  cherish  his  memory,  and 
treasure  every  remembrance  of  him. 

So  believing,  the  donor  of  this  noble  statue, 
by  his  generous  gift,  and  the  Commissioners  of  this 
Park,  by  their  ready  acceptance  and  the  grant  of 
this  appropriate  site,  have  done  honor  to  themselves 
and  to  their  community.  It  is  well  that  in  the 
Park  which  bears  the  name  and  is  adorned  by  the 
statue  of  Lincoln,  there  should  also  stand  the 
statue  of  another  great  man,  identified  as  he  was 
with  the  Great  West,  who,  like  Lincoln,  fell  by  the 
assassin's  hand,  and  like  him  wears  the  martyr's 
crown  of  those  who  have  given  their  lives  for  a 
great  idea.  And  could  the  spirit  of  La  Salle  for 


21 

r 

a  moment  animate  this  masterly  presentment  of  his 
outward  form,  and  gaze  upon  the  great  city  in 
which  it  stands,  we  can  well  imagine  the  satis- 
faction with  which  he  would  hail  this  realization  of 
his  splendid  dream,  and  say,  "  For  this  I  lived,  for 
this  I  labored,  and  for  this  I  died." 

In  conclusion  of  the  exercises,  the  French  Con- 
sul, Mr.  Edmond  Bruwaert,  on  the  invitation  of  the 
President  of  the  Board  of  Park  Commissioners, 
and  of  Mr.  Tree,  also  addressed  the  audience.  The 
Consul  spoke  as  follows : 

MONSIEUR   LE  PRESIDENT,  MONSIEUR    LE    MINIS- 

TRE — 

C'est  tres-aimable  a  vous  de  vouloir  bien  me 
demander,  avant  que  cette  ceremonie  ne  se  termine, 
de  dire  quelques  paroles  dans  la  langue  que  les 
echos  de  ce  rivage  durent  etre  fort  surpris  d'entendre, 
il  y  a  deux  siecles,  lorsque  Robert  de  La  Salle, 
abandonnant  la  barque  qui  1'avait  amene,  posa  pour 
la  premiere  fois  le  pied,  ici  meme,  sur  ce  sol  qu'il 
venait  de  decouvrir. 

Mais  que  pourrais-je  aj  outer  au  magnifique  eloge 
que  vous  venez  d'entendre  ?  Dans  son  eloquent 
discours,  M.  Mason  ne  vous  a-t-il  pas  fait  connaitre 
le  vaillant  voyageur  qui,  tout  jeune  encore,  dit 
adieu  a  une  patrie  dont  aucun  Frangais  ne  se  separe 
jamais  volontiers,  et  vint,  a  travers  niille  dangers, 


22 

conquerir  a  la  couronne  de  France  un  immense  et 
merveilleux  empire,  au  prix  de  souffrances  sans 
nombre,  au  prix  meme  de  sa  vie  ?  M.  Pierre  Margry 
a  public  les  ecrits  de  La  Salle  et  tous  ceux  qui  ont 
lu  le  recit  touchant  des  voyages,  des  succes,  des  revers 
du  modeste  heros,  dont  nous  voyons  ici  les  traits,  ne 
peuvent  que  partager  les  sentiments  d'admiration  qui 
viennent  d'etre  si  chaleureusement  exprimes. 

Toutefois,  je  suis  heureux  de  saisir  1'occasion 
que  vous  m'offrez  de  m'acquitter  d'un  devoir  qu'il 
m'est  tres-agreable  de  remplir.  Je  tenais  beaucoup, 
Monsieur  le  Ministre,  a  vous  remercier  de  la  bonne 
pensee  que  vous  avez  cue  d'associer  le  Consulat  de 
France  et  les  Societes  Fran£aises  de  cette  ville  a 
une  manifestation  qui  fait  le  plus  grand  honneur  a 
votre  esprit  eleve,  a  votre  generosite  et  a  la  liberalite 
des  administrateurs  du  Pare  de  Lincoln.  Depuis 
que  les  conquetes  de  La  Salle  sont  devenues  le 
patrimoine  de  la  Nation  Americaine,  vous  devez 
surtout  a  vous-me"mes  d'avoir  tire  un  admirable 
parti  de  cette  vaste  region  ou  chacune  de  nos 
families  Fran9aises  pourrait  aujourd'hui  posseder  un 
riche  domaine.  L'oubli  du  passe  est  assez  frequent 
dans  la  vie  des  peuples  et  vous  auriez  pu  ne  pas 
vous  souvenir  de  celui  qui  a,  le  premier,  livre  a 
1'histoire  ce  nom  de  Chicago  qui  setnble,  d'apres  ce 
que  nous  avons  sous  les  yeux,  appele  aux  plus  surpre- 
nantes  et  aux  plus  brillantes  destinees.  Mais  vous 


23 

avez  term  a  ce  que  la  memoire  de  La  Salle  vecut 
parmi  vous  et  vous  avez  voulu  qu'une  statue  de 
bronze  rappelat  dans  ce  heros  1'un  de  vos  precurseurs 
et  1'un  des  createurs  de  votre  magnifique  cite. 

Vous  ne  pouviez  donner  un  plus  haut  enseigne- 
ment  a  vos  enfants :  ils  apprendront  ici,  dans  ce 
Pare,  au  milieu  de  leurs  jeux,  que  la  volonte,  le 
courage,  la  pers6verance,  sont  des  qualites,  a  la 
portee  de  tous,  qui  menent  invariablement  1'homme 
au  succes  et  qui  m£me  peuvent  le  placer  au  rang 
de  ceux  que  le  monde  entier  se  plait  a  honorer. 

Comme  Francais,  je  suis  profondement  touche, 
Monsieur  le  Ministre,  de  1'hommage  public  et 
durable  que  vous  consacrez  ainsi  a  notre  com- 
patriote,  car  -Robert  de  La  Salle  appartenait  bien 
a  cette  nation  qu'on  trouve  toujours  en  avant, 
qu'il  s'agisse  de  science,  de  civilisation,  de  liberte. 
De  ce  cote  cotnme  de  1'autre  cote  de  1'Atlantique, 
tous  les  Fran£ais  applaudiront  a  cette  nouvelle 
marque  de  1'amitie  inalterable  qui  unit  depuis 
longtemps  et  qui  unira  longtemps  encore  les 
deux  Republiques.  Vous  n'aurez,  d'ailleurs,  pas  a 
regretter  d'avoir  faitacte  de  justice  envers  ce  noble 
et  infortune  chercheur;  car,  a  travers  les  siecles, 
cette  statue  de  bronze  s'elevera  ici,  sur  la  rive  du  Lac 
Michigan,  comme  un  monument  a  la  gloire  de  La 
Salle  sans  doute,  mais  aussi  a  votre  gloire,  Monsieur 
le  Ministre,  et  a  la  gloire  de  cette  grande  ville. 


